Dental Trends of the Future: Leaving the Past Behind

If you have an upcoming appointment to have a bad tooth extracted, you may be a little nervous about the first day of recovery while you are at home. To make things easier on yourself so you can relax after your procedure, use the following tips to prepare yourself for your home recovery.

Stock up on Soft Foods

Especially in the hours after your extraction, you will not be able to nor even want to eat anything hard. Not only would hard foods increase your discomfort as you try to bite on them, but they could also disturb the clot that forms in the socket, which could lead to a painful dry socket if it comes out.

To make sure you avoid having to eat anything hard, stock up on a few favorite soft foods that will be easy for you to eat, such as pudding, jello, rice, or mashed potatoes. If you want anything that requires cooking, consider cooking it the night before your extraction so that all you have to do is warm it up.

Prepare Small Ice Packs

After you have a tooth extracted, the gum tissue will be sore and most likely swell for a day or two as the body sends a rush of blood to facilitate the socket's healing. To help combat this, your dentist will likely recommend that you apply ice packs periodically to reduce both the swelling and the pain.

In preparation for this, prepare a few small ice packs and have them ready to go in your freezer. You can fill up plastic zipper bags with either ice or water. Then, have a couple of kitchen or hand towels next to the freezer so you only need to wrap the bags and apply them to your face.

Set Up Your Recovery Area

Whether or not you have a local anesthetic or partial or general anesthesia, you are probably not going to feel like doing too much after your extraction. To get ready for this, prepare your designated recovery area with a few things to help you through the day.

For example, you can set up the end of the couch you always sit on with a couple of pillows to elevate your head. Then, on the table next to it, make sure you have the remote control, books, phone charger, or whatever else you think you may need ready to go for when you get home.

Making sure you are prepared for after your tooth extraction can help make it easier once you get back home. For more information about recovering from your tooth extraction, speak with your dentist before the procedure so they can answer any questions you may have.